Journey Into Paradise
by Destiny's Call
Summary: HawkRider's Impossible Love Challenge. AU. Naminé is a slave girl for Lord Vanitas who reigns under King Xemnas. But when Naminé finds out a huge secret about her and her brother, she has to flee... with her master's son in tow! Naminé/Sora
1. Beginnings

Once upon a time, there was a beautiful picturesque little kingdom, Radiant Garden, far in the valley. And that kingdom was ruled by King Riku the Kind and Queen Kairi the Gracious.

And the beloved royal couple also had children, a lovely daughter with flowing blonde hair and the blue eyes of her mother and the wit and kindness of her father, and a strong son with golden hair, the equally blue eyes as his sister and a powerful fierceness and desire to protect those close to him.

The children were given a guardian, who soon fell in love with the two children and thus swore to always protect them, no matter the cost to himself.

But one day, a neighboring country, Never Was, wanted the land of Radiant Garden for themselves. So their rulers, the brothers King Xemnas and King Saïx, invaded the kingdom.  
>The kingdom's denizens took up arms and fought as hard as they could, but no one could defeat the army of Never Was.<p>

And finally, when they couldn't bear to watch their people suffer anymore, King Riku and Queen Kairi surrendered. They were taken as captives to work as slaves in the Kings' castle.

But as for the beloved prince and princess, their guardian took them and swept them away from the castle and they fled until they were later captured and placed them in one of the Lords' castles. This castle belonged to Lord Vanitas and Lady Xion. And thus, the two rulers and their guardian were put under slavery.

The kingdom suffered as the Kings put Radiant Garden under their power, transforming it to Hollow Bastion. And while every civilian grieved and fought to stay alive, they all knew one thing: one day, their prince and princess would return, and they would all be saved.


	2. Sorrow

I awoke to the sound of someone banging on my door. "Oi, girl! Wake up! The Family's going to awaken in about an hour, so hurry!" Ugh. Another day another breadcrumb. I stumbled out of bed, taking a quick moment to admire the pretty dawn that hung in the sky, and quickly dashed over to my closet, where white dresses made of rough fabric hung, and dirty, brown, leather sandals rested against the rough, splintery, wooden wall.

I grabbed a dress and pair of sandals and quickly put them on. I combed through my hair with a wooden comb (and almost got splinters in my head), quickly parted it to the side, and ran out of the room. Great. I probably only had a half hour to make the Young Master's breakfast and tea so I could eat briefly and be there when he woke up.

As I entered the kitchen, I spotted my brother. I quickly went over towards him and put a teakettle on the stovetop, almost forgetting to turn up the heat in my haste.

"You're up late, Naminé." My brother observed. He had honey blond hair that spiked mostly to the side, semi-tan skin, and bright electric blue eyes like mine. He was wearing the male slave uniform, a pair of burlap pants, the same sandals as me, and a white long-sleeved t-shirt that hung loosely against his thin, almost emaciated, frame.

I took this all in briefly before speaking. "Not my fault. Luxord was out drinking again last night and woke me up about fifteen minutes ago." I replied as I turned around and dashed to the refrigerator, almost tripping up another servant, I mean, slave, along the way. I quickly helped steady his stack of dishes before going on.

"Sorry, Dem!" I yelled over my shoulder, running along. This slave had dirty blond hair styled in some kind of mullet-thing, and sea green eyes.

"'s'all right, Nams." He called back as he continued.

I quickly pulled out some apple butter and grabbed bread, which I sliced thickly in a hurry. I popped it in the oven, and then whirled around again to grab some freshly-made biscuits, thanking whatever gods were out there that those were currently there.

I grabbed a silver tray and several small china plates, a silver teacup and spoon, and a teabag and dashed over to where the toasted bread was. I set it on one of the plates, spread apple butter over it, poured the hot water into the teacup over the teabag, grabbed a few sugar cubes, set the biscuit on another plate, and looked around for the perfect last touch to the Young Master's breakfast.

I noticed all the other slaves. There was Luxord, an older man with white blond hair cut short, and a small goatee, Demyx, who I described earlier, and Larxene, a slave girl in her twenties with yellow-blonde hair that was chin length and had two strands styled like antennae, turquoise eyes, and light-colored skin.

"Hey, Naminé," I head a familiar voice call, and turned to see my and my brother's close friend by one of the stovetops. This man, in his early-to-mid twenties, had fire red hair that was put in slicked-back spikes, emerald green eyes, really pale skin, and two upside-down triangle tattoos.

"Hey, Axel." I said, dashing up to him, balancing the tray as I went. "What's up?"

"Just cooking some ham for the Master. You need something, don't you? Here." He put two warm, juicy slices on the last plate. "There you are. And take a biscuit for yourself. So, who'd you get today?"

"The Young Master." I replied, somewhat bitterly.

"Ah. I got Mistress Xion. Roxas got Master Vanitas."

"Like usual." I sighed and grabbed a biscuit. "I don't get it. What's so special about us that the Family wants to see us every morning?"

Axel sighed to himself as I bit into the biscuit. I swallowed and spoke. "Well, I'd better hurry so the Young Master wakes up to a warm, fresh, breakfast. Bye, Axel. See you later."

"Bye Naminé."

I took the slaves' stairs two at a time and kept running until I made it to the Young Master's bedroom. One look told me that thankfully, he was still sleeping soundly. A glance at the clock told me it was time to wake him up.

I set the tray on his bedside table, threw the curtains aside to let in the light of the sunrise, and moved to the mass of sheets and blankets. "Master?" I whispered, shaking him gently. "Master, it's time to wake up. The Mistress's orders." He groaned incoherently, so I gently shook him again. I was shocked when he grabbed my wrist, turned his head to face me, and glared.

"Don't touch me, you filthy slave." He growled, eyes fierce and practically had his teeth bared.

I didn't lose my temper. "Master, it's breakfast time."

The Young Master rolled over. "I don't want a breakfast made by a dirty slave." He groaned. I was somewhat used to his complaining, but it still annoyed me to no end.

I grit my teeth lightly, and unclenched them so I could talk again. "I'll leave your breakfast by your bed, Master. Just remember to be dressed in an hour. The Mistress says that's when you start your lessons."

The Young Master said nothing, so I took my leave. I should've expected this. He calls me 'filthy', refuses to eat while I'm there, but later another slave brings back the tray and dishes, the food eaten. This person brought me pain. But he also brought me hope. It's confusing. But when I first started serving him about ten years ago, he didn't so much as look at me. Now he speaks to me. It may just be insults, but it's progress.

I took one last look at the young man who caused me so much sorrow, and said one last thing: "Well, have a good day, Master Sora."

* * *

><p><strong><em>Word Count Chapter 1: 302<br>_****_WC Chapter 2: 1001  
><em>****_Total: 1303_**

_Destiny: So here's HawkRider's 100 Themes of Impossible Love Challenge. I did a double-post because the other chapter/prologue was so short. Please enjoy and review!_


	3. Fun

After waking up the Family and taking care of our morning chores, we were free unless one of them called for us. It was our "Fun Time" as Axel called it. So I went over to Larxene, the only other girl in this house save for Mistress Xion.

"Hello, Larxene." I said as I entered your room.

"Naminé." She greeted and looked up at me. "Ugh. Naminé, your hair is atrocious! Come in and sit." I sat down on her bed like she told me. She kneeled behind me, a hairbrush in her hand. Hers wasn't wooden; she had had it before she was enslaved and managed to keep it.

She started to brush my hair. She can be very fierce around guys, but around girls, she's like an older sister or a mother: Bossy, demanding, but in the end extremely caring for you.

"So, other than getting your hair brushed properly and getting all these wood splinters out of it, what brings you here?"

I shrugged, and Larxene bit back a curse, as that movement almost threw her off balance. "I don't know. I'm just wondering what Master Sora has against us slaves."

"You don't have to call Sora 'Master' in here. Even _he _isn't allowed to intrude on his slaves' privacy. Not that he'd even care, of course."

"Yeah. I guess. But I'm still curious."

"Honestly, I think it's a power thing. He wants to feel like he's got all the power, so he puts all of us down. Just don't let him get to you."

"Don't worry." I said, smiling as she finished brushing and then went on to braid my hair. "I won't. I've gotten used to his insults. It's pretty much 'filthy slave'."

"Mmm. Well, you are kind of dirty." I spluttered and started to turn. "Don't move!" Larxene barked. I froze. "I'm almost done. Hang on." She picked up a rubber band that she had covered with yarn and wrapped it around the last bit of my hair. "There you go. Now go have fun."

"At least until the Family needs something." I said and started off. "Thanks, Larxene!"

"You're welcome. Anything to keep that rat's nest away!"

I skipped out of the big castle and into the yard. I took off my sandals and set them by the door, letting my bare feet caress the cool grass. It was summer, but it was wet enough that the grass stayed green.

I started running through; most of us slaves went outside during our break. Larxene was probably doing some vanity work before joining us. I ran up to the creek to notice the four boys swimming in the deep parts of it (it got pretty deep at times). Thankful that I had enough sense to bring an extra dress, I set my sandals and extra dress next to the boys' shoes, shirts, and extra pants.

I stepped into the clear, cold waters of the creek, and forced myself to not shiver. I continued, my dress plastering against my body, and I snuck up on the boys, who were engaging in a water war. I crept closer, closer, closer… until I leapt onto Axel's back with a yell, almost toppling him over. Darn. I was trying to knock him into the water.

"What? Who's on me? Naminé?" He shouted.

"You got it!" I yelled and laughed.

"Get off, Blondie! Come on!"

"No way, Ginger."

"Grr." Axel faked growled, and then moved to try and pry me off of him, failing at getting the action.

"Oi, you two." Luxord sighed, drinking something from a brown bottle. I was fairly certain it was rum.

Roxas leapt onto Demyx's back, yelling, "Chicken fight!"

I glared at him playfully. "You're on!" I climbed onto Axel's shoulders and wrapped my legs loosely around his neck, my hands on his head. A brief memory flash quickly showed me on a man's shoulders. It didn't take much to know it was my father. I was giggling and Roxas was demanding a turn.

I shook my head, clearing my mind of the memory, and focused my attention on Demyx and Roxas coming at me and Axel. As we got close enough, Roxas and I began to squabble. I aimed for his neck, his ticklish spot, as he aimed to push me off. He almost did, but I tightened my legs around Axel's throat, and he quickly pushed me back on his shoulders so I wouldn't suffocate him.

It went on like that for a little while. I finally managed to get at his exposed throat and started tickling. He started giggling like a school girl. I grinned, about to knock him down for the count.

And then I felt something pushing me backwards. I fell in the water with a splash! Hearing another splash, I looked up to see Roxas in the water too. Then, both of us turned our heads…

"Yes! Larxene and Luxord are the winners!" Larxene shouted, adding in an almost evil laugh that spooked all the guys, including Luxord. The blond dropped her, and Larxene looked up, glaring. Then, she tackled Luxord, knocking him in the water.

Roxas and I both grinned simultaneously and grabbed Demyx and Axel respectively, dragging them down as well. Soon, we were all soaked, laughing, and just having a lot of fun. But then, of course, that moment had to end.

The big bell in the Master's castle rang, signaling that the Family needed us. We all scrambled out of the creek, wiping the excess moisture off of our skin and squeezing the water from our hair. We quickly changed, not caring that we were in the presence of opposite genders, slid on our shoes, and started running for the castle, leaving our wet clothes behind.

I got an idea and turned to the others. "Race you there!" And I took off. I knew I wasn't a fast runner, but you still had to have as much fun as you could while it lasted. At least, that's how it was for us slaves. We entered the castle to be face-to-face with the Master. He was glaring us down.

"There are some intruders to the castle. You four-" he pointed at everyone except Roxas and me. "Take care of them. As for you two, make us lunch."

We all bowed our heads. "Yes, Master." We said in unison and went off to do our duties. And that was the last time I ever had fun at the castle.


	4. Video

Allow me to quickly describe the Family for you. The head of the house was Lord Vanitas, a man with black hair spiked so it seemed to defy gravity, deathly pale skin, and glimmering yellow eyes like a cat's. Those things always freaked me out.

Then there's Lady Xion, Master Vanitas's wife. Why they married, I'm not sure. They act nothing alike. But she has chin length raven hair, cream-colored skin, and ocean blue eyes. She always wore a long black dress that looked pretty on her.

Then there's their daughter. I don't really know much about her, except for the fact that her name was Yuffie and she had raven hair like her parents' that was about chin-length, somewhat pale skin, and brown eyes. She vanished a year after I arrived.

And finally, there's the Young Master, Sora. He looks kind of like his father except that his hair is chocolate brown and his eyes are blue like the Mistress's.

As I started on my chores, I swore that I was being watched. Right after Master Vanitas dismissed us, Roxas and I ran into the kitchen to whip up something for the Family's lunch.

It almost felt like there were video cameras everywhere. But of course they weren't. Cameras weren't invented until about twenty years after that day, never mind movie cameras.

But as I busied myself in the kitchen, I swear someone was watching me, studying me, scrutinizing me. But I told myself I was crazy.

I found a chicken in the refrigerator, and so I quickly popped it in the oven. Thirty minutes of cooking the chicken. Roxas noticed the entrée, and he started peeling some mashed potatoes, and I set the biscuits from this morning on the stovetop so they'd get warm. Some kind of fruit would help, and then while the Family ate, we'd cook dessert.

Thirty minutes later, the biscuits were warm and the chicken was out. With Roxas's help, I placed the chicken on a large china platter, and started making gravy. Meanwhile, Roxas was finishing up the mashed potatoes on the stovetop.

I then started making cranberry relish, chopped up some almonds, and mixed them together. Finally, the lunch was ready, after a little less than an hour of food prep. But since there were two of us making the meal, that was fast. Roxas carried out the chicken whilst I balanced the cranberry relish, mashed potatoes, and biscuits in my arms.

We set down the meal with a flourish, and Master Vanitas quickly took a bite from the chicken, and a rare grin crossed his face. "Delicious. Well done, you two."

We bowed our heads, accepting the phrase.

"Oh, and Naminé," It was Mistress Xion. She bothered to learn our names. "Go get Sora."

"Yes, Mistress." I said, cringing inside. I didn't want to go see Sora, but… I went to the slaves' stairs and started to walk up them like a girl walking to her death. But I steeled myself and knocked on the Young Master's door.

"Come in." I opened the door and stepped in. Master Sora was sitting at his desk, paper, a pen and ink strewn around its wooden surface. He sighed as I stepped in. "Oh, it's you."

"Master Sora, the Mistress sent me to get you for lunch." I said.

"What's your name?" Master Sora asked.

I froze, shocked. He had never asked anything about me before. "Well?" He asked.

"N-Naminé." I replied, somewhat shocked still.

"Well, Naminé, here." He set a ribbon in my hand it was sky blue and somewhat long. "Don't tell anyone I gave it to you."

"Master?"

"It was my older sister's, before… anyways, I've no use for it, and there's no way I'm approaching the witch." I flinched, knowing he was talking about Larxene. "Well, goodbye, Naminé." He said and walked off.

"Goodbye, Master Sora." I said, still shocked. _Hmm. I wonder._ I stepped over towards the Young Master's mirror and weaved the sky blue ribbon into my braid, tying it into the rubber band at the end.

I quickly dashed back to the kitchen, where Roxas was stirring some kind of mixture in a bowl. "I'm back." I said. "What're we making?"

"Cheesecake. I've got the crust. You make the filling, and I'll finish with the strawberry topping." I felt those nonexistent eyes on me again and I swore they were focused on the ribbon now in my hair. _You're just paranoid._ I said in my thoughts and started getting the cream cheese and everything else needed for cheesecake. I started mixing it together as Roxas baked the crust.

After the crust was baked, I put in the cream cheese mixture and popped it in the freezer. After about fifteen minutes, I pulled it out and Roxas drizzled thickened strawberry juice all over the cheesecake and put full sliced strawberries all around the cake.

"I'll take care of this." I said, and went into the dining room and set down the cheesecake. I flashed the Family a quick smile, and ducked out of the room, back to the kitchen.

"We get the 'inedible' parts of the chicken." Roxas told me. I grinned. "Inedible" meant the legs, the wings, and the neck. I devoured one of the legs as Roxas chowed down on the neck. We saved the rest for when the others returned.

After our brief meal, Roxas and I went to clear the Family's plates and put the leftovers in the refrigerator. The Family stood and returned to their quarters. That meant we were on break again until it was time to prep for dinner. As we turned to exit, Roxas finally noticed my new ribbon.

"Naminé? When did you get that ribbon?" He asked.

I kept myself from stuttering, "Well, Roxas, you see-" and that's when I heard the shouts. Roxas and I shared a look, and then we both ran for the door. We ran out of the castle and looked around for the source of the noise.

And then both of us turned to look at the same direction, and our eyes grew wide. "Axel?"

* * *

><p><strong>Word Count Chapter 3: 1083<br>Word Count Chapter 4: 1021  
>Total Word Count: 3444<strong>

_Destiny: Cliffhanger! Whoot!  
>Axel: No, not "Whoot". What happened to me?<br>Naminé: Well, it likely has something to do with blood.  
>Sora: How do you know that?<br>Naminé: That's the theme for the next chapter.  
>Axel: Let's get on with it, then! Review, or whatever has happened to me will happen to you.<em>


	5. Blood

He was covered in blood. There were many injuries all around him, but it was the blood that did it. I felt my knees start to turn to jelly and my stomach turn, flip-flopping and threatening to purge itself of the chicken I ate.

I forced myself to speak. "What happened?"

Axel seemed to be struggling. It was likely a miracle he had managed to get back here alive. "Ambush. Guys…taken. Maybe dead.

Roxas noticed my queasiness and waved me away. "Naminé, go get the Master." He removed his shirt and started tearing it. "I'll try to do something for him." I nodded and started running to the castle, up the stairs, and to Master Vanitas's room.

"Master!" I yelled, pounding on the door. "Master, it's an emergency!"

Master Vanitas opened the door, disgruntled. "What is it, girl?"

I was panting. "Master, Axel's returned… but only he. The others are missing and he is badly wounded."

Master Vanitas scoffed. "So?"

I was shocked into silence briefly before regaining my composure. "Master, if something isn't done, Axel will die!"

"And…?" Vanitas raised an eyebrow. "Why should I care?"

"Because even if we're slaves, we're people, and you're just going to sit here while he dies? What kind of monster are you?" And he slapped me. I shouldn't have been surprised; I _had_ just talked back to my Master, but he _deserved_ it! He was going to let my friend die!"

Vanitas glared daggers into me. "Don't you _ever_ disrespect me again, girl. Got it?" I nodded weakly. "You can try and save him, but if he dies, it doesn't matter." And he slammed the door shut.

I started crying. It was stupid. Tears don't solve anything. I was ready to go outside and give Roxas the news, when I heard a whisper.

"Slave girl!" I turned. It was Master Sora. "Follow me." He led me to their bathroom and entered, coming out with gauze, disinfectant, and ointment. "Father doesn't ever check this pantry. He'll never know."

"Why are you being so nice, Master?"

"Don't think it's because of you." Sora said coldly. "I just think that Father shouldn't go around wasting his slaves."

I was fairly certain he was lying, but couldn't say anything about it. Instead, I just nodded and took my leave, running outdoors and up to Roxas, practically dumping the supplies.

"Where's the Master?" Roxas asked.

"We're on our own." I replied. Roxas started disinfecting all the lacerations and cuts. "I can't believe it. I told him only Axel returned and that he was dying, and Master Vanitas didn't care at all. Even after I told him about the blood. So much blood. So much. So. Much. Blood." Nausea was starting to reappear. Roxas quickly noticed.

"Naminé, go sit down, facing the castle. I'll fix up Axel." I quickly nodded and did as he said, thankful that I didn't have to look at the blood anymore. It's not my fault I have hemophobia.

I'm not sure how long I was sitting down. Fifteen minutes, an hour… time was a blur. Finally, Roxas said, "He's patched up. Return these supplies, and I'll take him back to his room so he can rest."

I darted up the stairs, praying that Master Vanitas wasn't around. I really didn't want to see him. I went over to Master Sora's room and knocked. He opened the door.

I held out the supplies. "Thank you very much, Master."

"And the ginger?" Axel. At least, I assumed.

"We've done all we can. Roxas, my brother, thinks it's enough. But all we can do is wait and see.

Master Sora then did something he had never done before. He smiled. It was a small smile, but a smile nonetheless. "Good work, then, Naminé. Give the ginger…"

"Axel." I filled in the blank.

"Yes, give him my good wishes." I nodded and quickly went back to the slaves' quarters, specifically to Axel's room. Roxas had pulled up a chair and was sitting next to our dear friend's bed. I peered in first, and seeing no blood showing, I entered.

"How is he?" I asked, startling Roxas.

"Well, he's still alive." The blond said.

"Well, that's good. Any other news?"

"Well, I have a question. You said that the Master was leaving this to us. Did he give you access to the medicine cabinet?"

"No." I answered truthfully.

His cobalt eyes widened. "You _stole_ them, Naminé?"

I shook my head, flustered. "No! It's…" I tugged on my braid nervously. "It's the Young Master. After Master Vanitas rebuked me, he came up and offered me the supplies. He said that it was only because he 'didn't want to see his father waste their slaves', but I can almost suspect it's more than that."

"He gave you that ribbon." Roxas stated, not a question.

I nodded. "He said it used to be Mistress Yuffie's until she ran away."

"Well, he seems to be taking on to you."

"I don't _want_ him to!" My cheeks flushed, and my face grew hot, likely a bright crimson red.

"I don't know what the Master and the Mistress would think if they found out that their son was involved with a slave."

My blush deepened. "We aren't 'involved'!"

"You wish you were." I didn't deny it, and my face grew even redder. "Well, I'm not sure what to do. Big brothers are supposed to beat up jerk boys who flirt with their sisters, but he's my Master, so…"

"Roxas!" I practically yelled.

"Ow, ow, ow! Enough with the yelling! My head hurts all ready, as is. I don't need you two adding to it!"

Our eyes widened in unison, and our voices rang out joyously at the same time, "Axel! You're okay!"

"Ugh." Axel groaned. "Define 'okay'."

"Well, you're alive, and presumably not bleeding, so I'd say that's good."

"Presumably? I'll check." He moved his hand to a bandage.

"Please no, Axel. You know about my… 'condition'."

"Oh, right. Hemophobia. Sorry, Naminé. I almost forgot."

And then, a voice. "Slaves, get over here!"

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 5 Word Count: 1009<strong>

_Destiny: Woo! Chapter five!  
>Naminé: So when do we ditch this place?<br>Destiny: Soon.  
>Roxas: Review, now!<em>


	6. Phone

Roxas and I ran over to see the Family standing there. Mistress Xion looked genuinely concerned. "How is Axel?"

"He's going to be fine." Roxas replied.

"And the others?" Master Vanitas asked.

"They've been captured by the rebels, apparently." Vanitas shrugged.

"Father, you shouldn't waste the slaves." Sora said.

Vanitas regarded his son curiously. "You make a good point there, Sora. You, Blondie," he pointed at me.

"Yes, Master?"

"Wait momentarily. I will write a letter for you to deliver to the sheriff. Do you understand?" He asked, as if I were stupid.

I dipped my head, "Yes Master. May I-"

"Yes, yes. How else would you get to town?"

Nowadays, we have telephones to alert the sheriff/police/whoever enforces the law. Back then, we had letters and slaves. I was the messenger. So, after Master Vanitas returned, sealed envelope in hand, I was preparing to go. I borrowed one of Roxas's work uniforms, since no one would ever want to ride in a dress. I took the letter and headed out to the stables.

Inside were four horses. One for Mistress Xion, one for Master Sora, one for me, and one for another slave. As I stepped by a cream horse with a nice white mane, it nudged the gate, as if asking me where his rider was.

I stopped and looked over at the sweet horse. "Hey, Butterball. I don't know where Dem is either." An almost pained whinny followed. "Don't worry. We'll find him." I kept on walking until I reached a large slender glossy black stallion with a black mane. "Hey, Rave."

Raven, my horse, whinnied lightly. "Yep, we're going out to town." I saddled Raven and climbed on, riding him down the path leading to the gate which would lead to the road to town.

I love riding Rave; I still own him today. Whenever I ride him around, it feels amazing. And that time, I felt my hair whip around my face, my braid floating behind. Raven was charging, running almost impossibly fast. The two of us were the messenger, the telephone of the past.

After about fifteen minutes of riding, we arrived in town. I slowed Raven down from a fast gallop to a fairly slow-paced trot. It was a small town, with a food shop, a butcher, sheriff's office, church… you know, the works.

We stopped at the sheriff's office. I tied Raven to a post that had a water trough near it. I stepped up to the door and knocked lightly on the wooden door. Eventually, it opened, and there stood a chestnut-haired man with clear blue eyes and light complexion.

"Ah, Naminé." He said. "What brings you here."

"Hello, Terra." I greeted. "I bring a message from Master Vanitas. Is Sheriff Xaldin in?"

"I'll go check up with Master Xaldin briefly." I followed the brunet as we headed into the office.

"So, how are you and Aqua doing?" I asked.

"We're doing pretty well." Terra knocked on the door, and opened it when Xaldin gave the okay. "Master Xaldin, Lord Vanitas has sent a messenger to give a message to you." He announced.

"Very well. Lord Sephiroth, I apologize, but this is likely pressing matters."

The silver-haired Lord nodded. "Very well. I will await your response." And then Lord Sephiroth brushed past both me and Terra without a second glance.

"Come here, Lord Vanitas's Messenger." I stepped forward, over to the desk. "What news does Lord Vanitas send?"

I pulled out the envelope, unopened, and set it on the desk. "Those are my Master's words, Sheriff Xaldin."

"Is that all?" Sheriff Xaldin asked. I nodded. "Then, off with you." I exited the room with Terra.

"Better be off, Axel's injured and Roxas and I are sharing his duties."

Terra nodded. "Godspeed, Naminé."

"Say hi to Aqua and Ven for me." I said and moved over to the entrance hall. Lord Sephiroth stopped me.

"Girl, you are slave to Lord Vanitas, are you not?"

"Yes, Lord Sephiroth. I am."

"I have a message for you to give to your Master." He said. I nodded. "When the rebels attacked, their war cry was-" My eyes widened in shock. No. It was impossible! "You'll tell your Master, won't you?"

"Yes, Lord Sephiroth, of course I will." I exited the office, my head swimming.

"Heya! It's Naminé!" Oh, Tifa. Likely here with her Master.

"Hello, Tifa."

"What were you doing here?"

"Well, I had to give a message to the Sheriff. I need to head back now. Send Cloud, Leon, and Rinoa my good wishes, and tell Aerith to not give up."

Tifa smiled and nodded. "I will."

I climbed aboard Raven and we took off back to the castle.

As I entered, Master Vanitas came up to me. "You sent my message to the Sheriff?" He asked.

"Sheriff Xaldin says that he'll take care of it, Master."

"Very well, girl. Then you are dismissed." I nodded and quickly left.

I went over to the slaves' quarters and quickly pounded on Axel's door. "Axel, I need to talk to you!" Sometimes, being the messenger, the former phone, had its perks.

I opened the door, and Roxas was there as well. "What is it, Naminé?" The redhead asked. I briskly walked over towards Axel's bed, my voice ready to crack.

"We were all found together, correct?" I clarified.

"Yes, of course. That's what I told ya. And I don't lie to my two favorite people."

"Okay, then you can answer this question." Axel waved me to continue. "Whilst I was out, Lord Sephiroth gave me a message to deliver to Master Vanitas. He said that the rebels' war cry was, 'For Prince Roxas the Strong and Princess Naminé the Gentle." Roxas's eyes widened just as mine had when I heard. "Who _were_ we before slavery?"

Axel sighed. "I was going to tell you." He met our gazes. "You're the children of the King and Queen of Radiant Garden, and my father and I were your Guardians."

* * *

><p><em>Destiny: Shameless advertising time! I'm working on a huge author collaboration project. If you're interested, check my profile for details. Until tomorrow, review!<em>


	7. Save

Roxas broke the stunned silence. "We're… royalty?" He asked, shocked.

"What the heck?" I gasped, equally as shocked as my brother,

"I _was_ going to tell you. Sooner or later." Axel said.

"I need to go. I'll see you. And when I come back, you'd better tell us more." I started out and into the kitchen. I made the Young Master's afternoon tea and started upstairs. As I passed by the Master's and Mistress's room, I heard voices.

"But, dear, he's your slave." Mistress Xion said.

"He's _a_ slave, injured, and better off dead. He practically is, with the two blonds doing his work." Master Vanitas said.

"But _killing_ him?" I froze. Did she just say the k-word?

"One of the snipers will shoot him. Blame it on the rebels. End of problem." No way. Vanitas, my Master, was planning on killing my best friend, guardian, _protector_. He saved us before. Now I'd save him. I briskly entered the Young Master's room and set the tray of tea down.

"Hello, Master Sora. I've brought your tea."

Master Sora was scribbling furiously on the paper. "Yeah. Thanks, Naminé."

I left the Young Master's room for the last time, and I ran to the slaves' quarters, throwing Axel's door open.

"Master Vanitas is planning to kill Axel!" I shouted. I shut the door and quickly explained what I had overheard. "We need to leave."

"Escape?" Roxas asked. I nodded. "But how?"

"Horses. There are four. There are three of us." I looked over at my redhead friend. "Don't worry, we'll save you."

* * *

><p>That night, after supper and all our duties were done and the Family had finally surrendered to sleep, we snuck out. The warm night air was rich as it was in the day. There wasn't much moonlight, which meant that they'd have trouble seeing us, but we might have some trouble with our escape. Fortunately for us, I could find my way to the stable blindfolded.<p>

We had stolen—ugh, I still hate that we did that, but there was no other way—some food, health supplies, money, even. And of course our personal possessions and the other slaves'. I specifically took Larxene's hairbrush and Luxord's rum bottle. Demyx's small sitar went with Roxas, and Axel took some of Master Vanitas's and Mistress Xion's jewelry, just to spite the former.

Once we arrived, I saddled Raven, then helped Roxas saddle Butterball and finally assisted Axel in saddling a chestnut bay, Belle, the Mistress's horse. And that was when everything went wrong.

"Freeze, slaves!" It was Master Sora. We all turned to him. "I heard you all leaving the castle, whispering of escaping. You will not escape. I will alert the guards and-" And that's when I saw the arrow. The flaming arrow. It embedded itself in the wall and slowly, the flames began to creep up said wall. I bit my lip.

"I'm sorry, Sora. But we have to." And I grabbed his throat, more specifically, the artery there. His eyes rolled back, and I dropped him. He fell to the ground, unconscious.  
>"We have to go, guys!" Axel yelled. We all hurried out with all the horses, including Sora's, a gray—well, white—mare named Angel. "And we need to take him too!" He gestured to Sora.<p>

"Why?" I asked.

"The rebels will kill him upon sight. Do you want that on your conscience?"

I sighed, aggravated, but knowing he was right. "I need three lead ropes and Angel's things. We ducked back into the burning stable one last time. Roxas and I grabbed Angel's saddle and reins, and Axel found the ropes. I saddled Angel quickly, attached a lead rope with on end on Angel's bridle, and the other on Raven's bridle. Axel quickly tossed Sora onto Angel, and with the other two shorter ropes I tied the brunet on the young mare.

"It'll do." I said, and we mounted, hearing the cries of the rebels. I urged the horses forward with a whistle, and soon we were galloping. Sora, luckily, managed to stay on Angel.

Our horses, of course, would run out of energy, but we had to get as far as we could from Lord Vanitas's castle before the two residents woke up. And also hopefully before Sora woke up. Axel seemed to be growing exhausted of riding Belle, and surely the natural feel of a horse's gallop jarred him, probably hurting his healing injuries.

"Axel," I yelled, "do we need to slow down?"

The redhead shook his head vigorously. "We need to keep going. You two have to be safe!"

"Axel, we escaped to save you. The last thing we need is for you to injure yourself too much." Roxas yelled.

"We're already past town. We can stop and rest."

Axel gritted his teeth as Belle went over a bump. "Not until dawn."

Gah! Axel was so stubborn. "Axel, seriously. All this riding can't be good for your injuries—is that blood?" Even though the moonlight was sparse, I could see dark patches starting to blossom from where Axel had been bandaged.

I started to feel the usual queasiness that came whenever fresh blood crept free, taunting me. I set my head against Raven's neck, trying to keep my cool.

"Great job, Axel. Now we _definitely _have to pull over. You know about Naminé's hemophobia."

"All right, bind me up, and then we're off, okay?"

And at that point I couldn't hold it back any longer. I jerked Raven to a stop, clambered off of him, and vomited on the road. Roxas and Axel stopped too, and Roxas dismounted. "Wonderful, Axel. Just… wonderful." He then walked up to me, gently rubbing my back and talking soothingly.

"Hang on, Nami. I'll fix up Axel. It's a good thing we brought some supplies. I'll go get them." The supplies were in Angel's saddlebags. The horse had come to a halt just as suddenly as I had. After I had emptied my stomach of its contents, I quickly sat down with my head between my knees.

And then we heard the question, "Where the hell am I?"

* * *

><p><em>Naminé: Yes! We've blown that popsicle stand, and now we're off!<br>Sora: We're of to see the Wizard! The wonderful Wizard of Oz! We hear-  
><em>_Roxas: What's wrong with him?  
><em>_Axel: He hit his head while we were riding.  
><em>_Roxas: Oh.  
><em>_Naminé: See you next time, and don't forget to review!_


	8. Phobia

"Well?" I quickly dashed over to Angel and undid all the lead ropes. Sora fell to the ground after he was free of restraint. I still had to avert my eyes from my red-haired guardian, instead focusing on the fuming brunet in front of me.

"Where are we, slaves?"

"Oh, little Sora, don't you see? We're not your slaves anymore. We fled, far away from your father, and now we're free." Axel replied. I still avoided the dark blood.

"Then, take me back! I order you!"

"Didn't you just hear Axel?" I asked. "You're not our Master. We don't have to obey you anymore."

Sora grumbled incoherently. "So, where am I?"

"Honestly, no clue. But we're hours away from your home." Roxas replied. "So unless you want to go get lost, I suggest you stay here with us."

Sora grumbled again, but didn't say anything else to us. After Roxas fixed up Axel, the redhead started to get a fire going, and Roxas got some food. The blond spoke first.

"All right, listen up, Sora." He said. "Since you're gonna be traveling with us, we gotta lay down some ground rules. Number One: We're not your slaves, so don't order us around. Number Two: If you start bleeding at _all_ tell us right away so we can bandage it. Number Three: You _will_ likely have to do some work, so be ready for it. Okay?"

"Fine." Sora sighed, and Roxas handed him a bowl of soup. He then handed me one. "But… why do we have to stop if there's any blood?"

"Nami has hemophobia, the fear of blood. That's why we pulled over."

"All right, then." Sora said and dug into his food. I slowly started eating mine, not wanting to upset my newly-quelled stomach. I looked over at the others. Axel was shoving the food down his throat and finished in two minutes. Roxas was eating fairly fast too. It was habit. We rarely had any time to eat, so we were used to just chowing down. Unless my stomach had started acting up again. If that was the case, I was permitted a little more time than usual.

Sora, however, was eating very politely, like someone would expect the son of a lord to. He set his spoon down after each sip of soup, and wiped his mouth with a random strip of cloth (which I half-way suspected had been used as Axel's bandages recently. I didn't say anything, though.) every so often.

After everyone was done, Axel and Roxas figured that it was about time to set up camp. I was left to tend to the fire, while the boys—including Sora. The boy had to be dragged over to the horses first, though—gathered all the sleeping stuff which was mainly sleeping bags.

When they handed me mine, I, out of habit, set it down as far away from Axel's as I dared. I didn't want him to start bleeding in the middle of the night and set my phobia off. Roxas was fairly near Axel, and Sora was closer to me. Axel, being the night owl that he was, decided to stay up late, tending to the fire until sleep overtook him. Roxas, however, was the first one out, Sora soon following suit. And slowly, I surrendered myself to the depths of my subconscious.

* * *

><p>I dreamt of a battlefield. It was cold and rocky, with the wind whipping around. And then I saw me. It was me, except she held a white key-shaped sword in her hand, which was stained in blood. Blood. I felt the nausea begin again, and was confused as to why the dream me wasn't fazed by the bloodshed. Then, I realized, as she killed a thug creeping up behind her, she wasn't watching the blood at all. And then I saw Sheriff Xaldin coming up to her. I screamed at dream me to look, but she didn't. And then there was a blur of golden hair before dream Roxas was there, with two key-swords in his hands. One was black and the other was white. He ducked to be behind Xaldin, and dream me started running to help dream Roxas. The two of them killed dream Xaldin.<p>

Dream me didn't look at the blood. Instead, she looked at dream Roxas. As did I. And that's when I noticed her eyes widen.

"Roxas, look out!" And then there was blood. Dream Roxas had just been back stabbed twice, the blade coming through his chest.

Both me and dream me looked past him to see his attacker. And though I couldn't see his face, the dream me could. "You!" She yelled, and then I felt something on my arm.

* * *

><p>"…iné! Naminé! Wake up!"<p>

I opened my eyes and groaned. "D-Demyx?" And then I looked up to see brown hair and blue eyes. "Sora?"

"You were having a nightmare." Sora replied softly, almost kindly. I felt my cheeks grow a bit warm. Then, the brunet shook his head. "And I couldn't sleep with all that whimpering and crying. Don't think that I woke you up because I care about you or something like that."

"I… I would never!" I said. Sora crawled back into his sleeping bag without another glance at me, but I knew there was something I needed to do first. I got out of my bag and stepped over to the sleeping Axel and Roxas. I knelt by the blond and gently pushed the golden locks out of his face. He was sleeping peacefully, something that I hadn't been. I gently pressed a kiss to his forehead before getting back up.

For as long as I could remember, I had had hemophobia. I was used to it, not ever being able to look at blood. (Which also meant ix-nay on handling some meats.) But this dream… hemophobia was _one_ thing that I could survive having. But now… I looked one last time at my blond brother before going back to my sleeping bag and crawling inside. Was there something else I needed to fear?

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 8 WC: 1015<strong>

**Total WC: 7451**

_Destiny: Here's chapter eight!_

_Roxas: that dream… I'm not _really_ gonna die, right?_

_Axel: Roxas, please. As if I'd let that happen._

_Naminé: Yeah, it's craziness. Just a nightmare._

_Destiny: Review, loves._


	9. Traffic

The next morning, we ate a quick breakfast, packed up, cleaned up camp so we wouldn't leave a trace behind, and started off. Sora was riding willingly this time (otherwise we would've tied him to Angel again.)

And not long after we started on horseback, we ran into a traffic jam. Yep. A traffic jam. On horseback. Everyone was on horses, but it was backed up all the way past town. Or, the nearest town. With a jam this large, no one could tell how far it was actually backed up.

I sighed and leaned back into Raven's saddle. "Well, this is great. Who knows how long we'll be stuck here!" I huffed.

Roxas gently put a hand on my arm, reached into his saddlebags, and pulled out a deck of cards. "Let's play a game."

But just as he said that, two people traveling on foot walked by, chatting. I quickly leaned over on my horse and looked at them. "Excuse me." The duo looked up. "Do you know why there's a traffic jam?"

"Yeah." One said. "Apparently, the son of Lord Vanitas was kidnapped by his slaves, and were headed this way. The Sheriff's checking everyone who goes by here. It's gonna take a while. Likely 'til dawn."

"Dawn?" I quickly motioned to Axel, and he pulled Sora's hood over his face and slammed his hand into the younger's mouth. "We can't stay 'til dawn. Would either of you know another path?"

"There's the road to Twilight Town. If you don't mind taking a detour, that is."

"Twilight Town?"

The other spoke. "Aye, just go back about fifteen yards, and then take a left. There's an almost-invisible trail that leads right to the prettiest city in the kingdom, besides what the Royal City used to look like. And rumor has it the Resistance is there."

"Thank you very much, gentlemen." And so, I pulled out of the road with the others trailing behind, and started looking around for the trail that the men had mentioned. Finally, I saw a semi-trodden path and turned onto it, grateful that Sheriff Xaldin hadn't seen it. We settled into a light gait and started chatting.

"What's the Resistance, Axel?" Roxas asked.

"It's a group of rebels going against King Xemnas and King Saïx." Sora replied.  
>"Gah, the lowlifes. Another goal, apparently, is to locate the lost Royal Twins."<p>

"Royal Twins?" I asked. I had never heard that term before.

"The son and daughter of King Riku and Queen Kairi. From what I've heard, there have been many people going there, claiming to be them, but they're all sent away almost at once. I don't know why."

"Hm. If that's true, then that means that there must be someone there who knows them personally, more or less." Axel thought aloud. "Either way, we should go check it out."

"No way." Sora said. "I'm not going into a building filled with ruffians and thugs and criminals and rebels. In fact, what's stopping me from turning around, going to the Sheriff, and let them catch you?"

"Sora." The brunet turned to the redhead. "I'm sorry." And then the older man slammed the teenager's head into a nearby tree. We quickly stopped and tied him onto Angel and tying Angel to Raven before starting again.

Roxas looked over at the now-unconscious brunet. "That poor guy. He just can't get a break." He said.

"No, he can't." I said, and we continued on. At last, I began to speak again. "Axel, do you think we should just waltz right in there and say were the Royal Twins? How would we convince them we're _us_?"

Axel shrugged. "I have no idea."

"How old were we when we escaped?" Roxas asked.

"Three years old. We've been enslaved for twelve."

"How old were you?"

"Twenty." He glanced at the path again. "How long do you think it will be until we reach Twilight Town?"

I glanced at the sun, now starting its downward climb from noon. "I don't know." I replied. "But hopefully we'll be there by dusk at the most."

"I hope so too. We'll need to find some lodgings."

"Or the Resistance HQ." Roxas pointed out.

"Yeah, that too. We need to convince them that you're royalty. But it shouldn't be that difficult." Axel opened his mouth extremely wide.

"Please don't sing that song from _Anastasia_." I sighed. Axel huffed and closed his mouth. We rode on in silence for a while, just listening to the soothing clip-clop of our horses' hooves.

"Guys!" Roxas eventually shouted in excitement. "Look!" We did, and my jaw dropped to the ground. The sun was just now beginning to set, and the beautiful light painted all the buildings and ground and pretty much every single thing in existence a lovely color orange.

"Whoa." Axel breathed. "So that's why it's called Twilight Town. It's beautiful."

"Indeed it is." Roxas and I said in unison. I then swiveled my head around to face the boys."

"So, how do we find the Resistance?" I asked.

"The Resistance?" We stopped our horses and turned to see a man in a black cloak with his hood up stepping out of a dark alley. "What on earth do you want with the Resistance?"

Axel dismounted Belle and spoke in a down-to-business tone. "It is a matter of urgency. For you see," he looked around to make sure the coast was clear. "I've brought the Royal Twins."

The man looked up, at me and my brother, and laughed. "Them? Those tiny pipsqueaks? I'm sorry, but this is the best joke I've heard in a while!"

"It's not a joke!" I yelled, glaring daggers into the man's hooded face. "I am Princess Naminé, and over there is my brother, Prince Roxas!"

Roxas got off and joined me. The figure scratched his chin. "Interesting. Either you've done your research well or you're the real deal, because you two are part of the few that got the names right."

"Well, put them to the test. See if they're the real deal. C'mon, what's there to lose?" Axel asked.

The figure turned to us again. "Follow me, bring your horses, and for Kingdom Heart's sake, be quiet. And if you are lying, you will not escape alive. So back off now, if you wish."

"No." I said, my voice firmer than it had ever been before. "Take us to your HQ."

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter WC: 1,068<strong>

**Total WC: 8, 519**

_Destiny: Eventually, this'll average at least 1,000 words per chapter (Not including these notes, of course.) But…yeah, no comment. Review. Bye._


	10. Challenge

After we descended into a dark corridor, we came to a place to leave our horses. Axel untied Sora, throwing the brunet over his shoulder. "This is my carry-on." He had explained when the man asked. "Just keep going."

After a bit, he took off his hood, revealing shoulder-length rose pink hair. The man turned to us. "You two, we are about to approach the Deputy. Be respectful." He barked.

"Don't worry, I'll treat him as if he were my Master." I mumbled, and then spoke up. "What's your name?" I asked.

"…Marluxia." He replied. "Now, be prepared. There are many ways the Deputy can identify you. If the deputy believes you have the potential to be the Royal Twins, which has only happened thrice, you will be sent to meet our leader. Here we are." He stopped at a pitch-black door and opened it. "Good luck." And he stepped in, us following him.

We saw another figure, with the black cloak and hood on, sitting on a desk, throwing some kind of enlarged shuriken at the wall. When the figure saw us, he turned and looked at Marluxia.

"Marly, why have you brought strangers here?" Oops. That was a girl's voice. My bad. Marluxia looked a bit annoyed by the nickname.

"These two claim to be the Royal Twins. They got their names right."

"Hm. Interesting. Well, let's put you to the challenge and see if you sink or swim." She then took off her hood, and I gasped. "Are you all right?" She asked.

"You… I've seen you before." I closed my eyes and brought up the picture again. Chin-length raven hair, brown eyes, pale complexion, and an odd fascination with headbands and ribbons. I touched the sky blue one in my braid. "Yuffie."

And at that moment, Sora stirred. Yuffie didn't notice him. "How do you know who I am?" She demanded.

"I was enslaved into your father's house after he caught me, my brother, and my guardian!" I explained. "I've seen your picture, next to your brother's."

"Guardian?" Yuffie's eyes moved past me, to Axel. "How… how would you know that…?" She turned to Marluxia.

"Mar-Mar, we're going to see _him_."

"Are you serious? You really think…?"

"It's possible." Yuffie said. "Let's go."

The next room we entered was huge and black. The walls seemed to actually be made of ebony, and the floor of obsidian. Huge black lights hung instead of normal lights, giving the room an eerie glow. I was pretty much glowing, wearing an all-white dress. (I don't like riding in skirts, but I can.)

And then, there were two thrones. Both were made of ivory and polished marble, glowing in the UV rays. In front of them, one step lower, was a silver throne/chair. Sitting in it was a man with black hair with silver streaks and wearing the black cloak.

As soon as we entered, Axel's eyes went wide. "No way…" He breathed.

The man sighed. "Yuffie, please don't tell me you brought 'the Royal Twins'."

"Sir, just check them out first, please. Look who's with them."

He looked and gasped. "Axel, dude, is that you?" He stepped forward, and our red-haired guardian set Sora on the ground and started to walk over to the black-haired man. Then, the man stopped. "I need to know you're real." He said. "How did I get this?" He pointed at what I recognized was an eye patch. Also, I realized now that he was closer, he had scars all over his face and the remaining eye was a glinting yellow, almost cat-like.

My guess was that it was from some huge fight. So I was surprised when Axel said differently. "You called Zexion short. Yeah. He went savage on you. It's a miracle you only lost an eye. I remember when Pete called him tiny… the poor sucker."

The man started to grin. "Axel! It's really you, dude!" And the two embraced, like old friends being reunited after over a decade. Wait. That probably was true. "So… you really…" He came closer to us, and got on his knees. "My Lord and Lady. You have returned!"

"Uh…" Roxas stuttered. I looked over to Axel, who mouthed, "You may rise."

I quickly repeated the silent words, and the man stood. "I am Xigbar. I was Captain of the Royal Guard before the King and Queen surrendered. After that, I came here, and with other denizens of the castle, I formed the Resistance."

"Axel, how do you know him?" Roxas inquired.

"We both had important jobs at the castle. It's only natural that we ran into each other often." Axel said.

"Okay… well… who's Zexion?"

"Another guy. He doesn't like being called short, so don't." I took another glance at Xigbar's ruined face and made a mental note to do as he said.

"So, I'm guessing you dudes will stay here for a while?" He asked.

Axel stuffed his hands in his pockets. "That's the plan."

"All right-y then. Marluxia can show you to your rooms, and I'll send someone down for cloak fitting."

"Redhead," Marluxia said, "what about your 'carry-on'?"

Axel looked back and picked up his "carry-on", slinging him over his shoulder. "He's staying too. Let's carry on."

Marluxia led us down a hallway, stopping at a door and opening it. "Blond boy and the 'carry-on', as you like to call him, will be staying here. Redhead and Blondie, keep following."

I quickly turned and gave Roxas a hug before dashing to catch up to the pink-haired man. "Redhead, you'll stay here. Hopefully, you tolerate your roommate's… hyperactivity." Axel gave me a quick, two-fingered salute, and entered the room.

I followed Marluxia to the end of the hall, where he gestured to a door. "Good luck getting along with her." He said as he left. Wow. Reassuring. Not. I watch him leave in a flourish, and then twisted the doorknob and opening the door.

And as soon as I did, I was shocked into both silence and stillness. "What are _you_ doing here?" My roommate gasped.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter WC: 1012<br>****Total WC: 9531**

_Destiny:…No comment. Review._


	11. Change

"Larxene?" I gasped. I then felt myself running towards the blonde. "Larxene!" And I tackled her into a hug, almost knocking her off her feet.

Larxene then spoke. "Naminé, get off."

I stepped back. "Sorry. I just… was afraid you died…"

Larxene rolled her eyes lightly and sighed. "Naminé, do you honestly think I'm gonna go down that easily?" I looked down, away from her. "But still, I'm fine, you're fine, we're all away from that creep Vanitas…" She put a hand on my shoulder. "Everything's gonna be okay."

I nodded, a light smile on my face. "So, the others…?"

"They're here too. You'll see them soon, I'm sure."

"And Luxord…"

"…has been getting drunk like nobody's business. Honestly, that Brit…" she then rattled off a string of words that I am not going to repeat in this story. "…But that's beside the point. How did you get here?"

"Well, I overheard the Ma—Vanitas—talking to his wife about having Axel killed because he was injured. Also, I've heard something else that you'll find out later. And so, me, Roxas, and Axel attempted to escape... But Sora found us. So I knocked him out, and we were forced to take him with us. And then we got here."

"Well, I guess it _is_ good to see you. I've been stuck with Musical Mullet-head and Brandy-loving Brit, and I can't take too much more of just them." Larxene sighed, falling backwards onto her bed.

"Is it really that bad here?" I asked, worrying that maybe I shouldn't have come.

"Nah. It's not all that bad." Larxene replied. "Wait. Sora's here?"

"Yep." I sighed. "He would've died if we left him, and…"

"You wouldn't be able to live with that on your conscience." Larxene finished for me. I nodded. "Naminé, one more thing," she said.

"Yes?" I asked.

"Your hair is _terrible_! If I had my hairbrush—" I handed it to her—"Where?" She asked, at a loss for words.

"I brought it with me." I sat down in front of the bed and Larxene sat on the bed, like usual. The blonde then started to undo my braid and brush out the waves of hair.

"How long did you leave the braid in?"

"A few days." I replied.

Larxene tsked. "Well, your hair will be wavy all day and night then. I'll just settle for a ponytail. Now—"

"Could you use this?" I asked, handing her my ribbon. Larxene nodded, I think, I couldn't turn my head and look.

"Where'd you get it?" She asked.

"Sora gave it to me." I replied.

"Why'd he do a nice thing to you?"

"He said he'd either give it to me or you, and he was scared of you."

"Just like everyone is." Larxene said. "Except you." I heard her set her brush down. "Done!" I stood up and took a look in the mirror. Larxene had managed to tame the tresses of hair and had pulled every last strand into the ponytail, held by the rubber band that had my ribbon laced through the band so it rested in my hair loosely, almost like another piece of hair.

"Thank you, Larxene!" I said, hugging her tightly as the door opened.

"Haven't you ever heard of knocking, girl?" Larxene snapped as Yuffie stepped in, holding several black cloaks and boots in her arms.

"These are for the princess." Yuffie said evenly, holding her gaze.

"Princess? What do you mean 'princess'? I—" She turned and looked at me.

I smiled sheepishly and half-waved. "Hi."

"You're a princess?" She gasped, her jaw dropped so low it hit the floor.

"The one and only." I murmured.

Yuffie brushed past Larxene and stepped up to me. "These should fit. But if, for any reason, they don't, send for me. All right, Princess?"

I blushed and looked down. "You don't have to call me 'Princess'." I said. "'Naminé' works just fine for me."

Yuffie just handed over the outfits and exited, leaving me with a slightly mad blonde with a nasty temper.

"Why didn't you tell me?" She asked, it hissing at the end.

"I only found out after you left, and we only just met, and I hadn't thought of a good way to mention it yet." I explained, sounding a bit dumb.

"Well, get changed, because in fifteen minutes, Pirate-Surfer addresses us." I quickly took off my servants' dress, not minding that Larxene was in the room. I could strip naked and change in front of _Luxord._ Larxene was no deal. I looked at the dress and set in on my bed. Half of me wanted to give it to Axel to burn it; the other half wanted me to keep it. Why, I wasn't sure at the time.

I grabbed the shirt and pants and pulled them on finding they were skintight. I sighed and put on the black coat after that, then sliding on my black boots. Black wasn't my favorite color; white was, but I didn't look _terrible_ the leather that the coat was obviously made of hugged my entire body, it showed off my curves some, but it was also kind of uncomfortable.

Larxene nodded her approval. "You actually look pretty good in that." She said. I blushed again, also thankful she had dropped the—"And after the meeting, we need to gather up everyone so they know about you being a princess."—previous topic… I sighed. "And I assume Roxas is a prince?" I nodded, not trusting my voice. "Well, you know that they deserve to know." She said. I nodded again. "Now come on. Let's go see old Cap'n Californian." Man, did Larxene ever run out of names?

Larxene started out the door, and I trailed after her like a lost puppy. Things here were so… different than anything I'd ever known. I wasn't a servant; I was equal to everyone around me. Or was I? I stayed behind Larxene, not wanting to meet anyone new yet. Things were different around here; it was quite a change I'd have to get used to. _But…_ I looked towards the large meeting hall, where Roxas, Axel, and I had met Xigbar earlier. _I know I can do this._ And we walked inside.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter WC: 1046<br>****Total WC: 10577**

_Destiny: Sorry for taking so long. Writer's block.  
><em>_Naminé: At least you're back.  
><em>_Destiny: Yep. And next chapter, more action begins.  
><em>_Axel: Yay!  
><em>_Sora: Will I be conscious?  
><em>_Destiny: Maybe.  
><em>__Roxas: Review for action! And maybe a sprinkle of romance…__


	12. Obnoxious

We met up with Luxord, Demyx, Axel, Roxas, and a now-conscious Sora. I scooted over to my brother and Axel.

"Hey, Rox."

"Hey, Nami."

"Hey, how are you settling in, _Princess_?"

I glared at the redhead and hissed, "Don't call me that. I'm still the same Naminé as before."

"Just royalty." Roxas added.

"Exactly."

"Whatever. Xiggy's 'bout to speak, anyway."

Xigbar was standing in the front of the room with a large smile. "Everyone! I have wonderful news! Our beloved Prince and Princess have returned!" A shocked mumbling of words escalated among the crowd. "I know, I hardly believed it at first as well. But they have proved their lineage!"

I could pick out some of the phrases, the most common one being: "Who are they? Who are they?"

I gulped lightly and moved to grip Roxas's hand. He held mine just as tightly as I held his. Xigbar turned his head to lock eyes with Axel, and gave a slight nod. The redhead then nudged us. We turned towards him.

"Come on, Xiggy's calling for you two." I gulped again and slowly Roxas and I started to walk over to the aisle, still holding each others' hands. "Stand up straight and look straight ahead," Axel whispered as we passed him. "Make a good impression."

Whispers began to start as we were out in the open without anybody to shield us. I forced myself to straighten up and look ahead, but I was practically shaking.

"Those are the Royal Twins?" "They look like ragamuffins." "Oh, hush. Can't you see how nervous they are?" Were among the many things being passed around. And then, it seemed like we were suddenly in front of Xigbar.

He gently turned us around. "All hail Prince Roxas and Princess Naminé!" And slowly, the people began to kneel before us. My cheeks flamed up. I wasn't used to this kind of attention. Looking at Roxas and his slightly reddened cheeks, I knew he felt the same way.

After a bit, everyone stood up again and Xigbar smiled. "That is all. You are dismissed." And the crowd began to disperse. Some people came up to us and bowed before us and praising us past the point of embarrassment.

Eventually, Xigbar spoke to us again. "My Lord and Lady, may I have a word?" We nodded and he led us to the shining white thrones. "This is where you'll sit for the remainder of meetings, if you don't mind."

I blushed again. "Um, okay, Xigbar. That's fine with us."

"Great. Thank you."

"You don't need to be so formal with us. It's kind of embarrassing." Roxas said, scratching the back of his neck.

"Really?" Roxas nodded. I did too. "Okay. As you wish, then. Yuffie, will you come over here?" The self-proclaimed ninja began dancing over to him. "And it appears that your friends want to talk to you." We turned to see that all of them, including a sober Luxord and a shocked Sora, were standing there. And so we walked back over to them.

"Um, hi." I said, blushing.

"You two are royalty? Holy crap, that's awesome!" Demyx exclaimed. "Wait. You don't want us to be formal or have us call you 'Your Highness', right?"

"Right." I replied.

"Good! 'cause that would end up being a bit awkward."

I looked out of the corner of my eye at Sora, who was staring at me. I caught his eye and he turned his head, but he was still looking at me. The others were busy talking with Roxas, so I mouthed to Sora, "Do you want to say something?"

Sora blushed, and the redness forming across his face made him look _really_ cute—why did I just think that? He gave a slight nod, and mouthed, "Elsewhere." I nodded slightly, and he started walking off, and I followed. I belatedly realized that he was wearing the same black cloak as everyone else in the Resistance. We exited the Great Hall, which I remembered it was called, and went out another door to reveal a greenhouse with warm, artificial sun and filled with numerous plants.

"You're a princess?" The brunet suddenly asked.

"Yes." I murmured. "I'm the daughter of King Riku and Queen Kairi."

Sora ran a hand through his spiked hair. "This is impossible… Do you know how impossible this is?"

"Sora, is _that_ all you wanted to say? Because you're being a bit obnoxious."

Sora got a grip. "Sorry. It's just… you're a _princess_, and I've been… well… when you become supreme ruler or whatever, you're not going to ask for my head on a plate, right?"

I was disgusted. "Sora, why would you think that? You _know_ I hate blood."

"Sorry. Again. I've heard of people that have done that. And I was kind of freaking out. May I ask you a question?"

"You just did." I couldn't help myself.

"That's what I'm asking you." Sora replied.

"What?" I asked.

"How on _earth_ do you manage to keep up a noble air, but be… just so _normal_?"

"It's not really that odd. I'm a young human being."

"I don't understand."

"Sora, you just need to let out the kid in you. And maybe even be a bit obnoxious at the same time."

"But Father always—"

"Sora, your father is a jerk and a murderer. Don't take his advice, or you'll turn into him." I tried to imagine Sora as Vanitas, and, well, it was a bit freaky and disturbing.

Sora seemed to be thinking it over. "I don't know…"

I remembered something else. Something important. Something I had to tell him. "Sora?"

"Yes?" He asked, seeming pretty darn curious.

"Yuffie's alive. And she's here. She's the deputy." I told him.

His eyes, a beautiful ocean blue that I had never really _seen_ before, started to widened and stared straight into mine, shocked. "Are you serious?"

"Completely. I recognized her when we first came here—you were unconscious at that point, and I've only just seen you conscious. She doesn't know you're here yet."

Sora was already on the move, dashing out of the greenhouse and likely to the Great Hall to find his sister. With a soft smile, I chased after him, not wanting to miss it.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter WC: 1043<br>Total WC: 11620**

_Destiny: Since there's the new Image Manager thing... if anyone wants to draw some fanart for the main cover, they can. Just PM me.  
>Axel: She's just asking because she can't draw worth crap.<br>Destiny: Axel!  
>Larxene: It's true.<br>Destiny: Why do fictional characters gang up on me? Gah!  
>Demyx: Uh... review or I'll... hm, I don't know. I'll get back to you on that.<br>Sora: Oh, let me. Review for fluffiness next chapter.  
>Demyx: How are you so good at this?<br>Sora: Practice.  
>Roxas: Um... bye, everyone.<em>


	13. Poll

As we entered the Great Hall again, I noticed that our small group of friends had dispersed. Sora was looking throughout the hall, his eyes setting on Xigbar. And the woman standing next to him.

With a dazed look spreading rapidly across his face, Sora stepped over to them; I stood nearby Sora.

Xigbar first noticed us. "Is there something you need?" He asked. And Yuffie turned.

Sora's breath hitched as he looked at the raven-haired girl in front of him. Yuffie's eyes went wide and she bent down slightly, her hands on her knees, so they were staring into each other's eyes.

"Y-Yuffie? It's really you?" He gasped.

"Sora? You're here? You're okay. You're okay!" And she reached out and pulled her brother into a tight hug. Sora returned it with a bright smile. I stood back with Xigbar gently grinning at the two.

And then Marluxia ran in, a clipboard and pen in hand. "Xigbar! Xigbar! I was out talking to the other members of the Resistance, and, well, it kind of turned into me polling them, but, most Resistance members don't want two children as their leaders." His eyes found me. "No offense meant, Your Highness." I waved him off.

"They _will_ follow them. They wanted their rulers; I gave them to them. I told the Resistance they'd be young. I told them that." Xigbar replied forcefully.

"Yes, I know, Xigbar. I just thought you'd like to know. Good day, Xigbar, Yuffie, my liege." And he was gone again.

"What does he mean?" Sora asked. "About they _had_ wanted the prince and princess as their leaders, but now they don't?"

Yuffie answered that. "Well, you know how in Christianity, the Jews were hoping and praying for the Savior?" Both he and I nodded. "Well, when their Savior came around, they were hoping for a warrior, one that would free them from poverty and lead them to freedom. They weren't, however, expecting a peace-loving minister who dined with sinners and overturned the ancient laws. So they turned their backs on him. Same basic idea here."

I spoke up then. "So let us prove ourselves to them."

"Princess?" Xigbar and Yuffie gasped while Sora just stared at me.

I straightened up, looking at the three people staring at me. "Let me and Roxas prove ourselves worthy of the titles Prince and Princess. We'll do it. I just want them on our side."

Xigbar didn't look convinced. He crossed his arms. "And how, Your Highness, do you think you can manage that? How would you get an entire crowd on your side?"

I was hoping one of you guys would have an idea? Or I could ask my friends: Axel, Luxord, Larxene, Demyx..."

"I have an idea," Yuffie said. "Our Princess is talented in many fields, yes? Including horseback riding? Why don't we showcase those skills, and see if they can motivate the crowd. Together, of course. Always together. We want them to know both are on the same side."

I smiled. "I like the idea, Yuffie."

She blushed, eyes wide. "Do you really, Princess? Oh, thank you so much."

I gave a nod and moved over to stare straight into Xigbar's eye. "And you, Xigbar? Anything against that?"

Xigbar sighed, defeated. "Oh, alright. As long as everyone can show what they can do."

Sora nodded vigorously. "That'll be fun. I can show my sword fighting skills."

"You can sword fight?" I asked. He nodded, and I raised an eyebrow. "Really. You might just replace Xiggy here eventually for Captain."

Xigbar began to splutter incoherently, and Sora blushed, with that really cute half-grin he had.

I almost blushed at the thought. Was I... attracted to Sora? Was that even possible? Would he even _like_ a girl like me? All sorts of questions were pouring out in my head, and I could feel a stirring in my heart. It was sweet and strong and the most powerful thing in the world. It felt like love.

I sat up in bed, in a t-shirt and boxers I had stolen from Demyx. (Long story) My hair was undone, its soft blond locks falling against my face and shoulders.

Larxene glanced up from the book she was reading and looked at me. She was wearing a shirt and boxers she had taken from.., I think it was Marluxia. Either way, the boxers were rose-pink and had red imprints of flowers. "Naminé? For the love of God, girl. What's got you so worked up?"

I looked over at her, knowing that was the closest thing I would be getting to kindness out of the blonde. "I think I'm going crazy." I mumbled.

"Over a boy?" Larxene asked, setting down her book and crawling over to my bed. I nodded. "Sora? Yes. It's pretty darn obvious. You're falling for your former Master who likely hates your guts. Boy, Naminé, love gave you a rough deal."

I thought back to the greenhouse. "He doesn't seem that bad." I murmured. "I don't think it's a bad deal at all." I knew it was happening. I was falling for him. Hard. My heart twinged, letting the warmth of love fill me up, giving bliss. 


	14. Bad

"My, Lord, if I may intervene-"

"-Really, please call me Roxas."

"Yes, Your High-Roxas. You're holding your sword backwards."

I looked over at Yuffie and Roxas and stifled my laughter with a hand as my little brother blushed beet red, stammered something, and flipped the sword around so he was holding the hilt, not the blade. Yuffie was helping us prepare for the "Skill Tournament" as Axel had dubbed it. So, we were training and learning swordsmanship from the ninja. I was looking over the stock of weapons. Roxas and I had tried a few, but had yet to find the weapons we really liked.

I started scanning the weapons again, my fingers finding a crossbow. I picked it up and examined it, tracing the wood and trigger, before shaking my head and put it down.

"How am I doing, Yuffie?"

"Roxas, it's better to keep your eyes open when you fight. And also better to not flail."

I rolled my eyes as I reached for a hunting knife, scanning the intricate designs on the blade. But still, the connection just wasn't there, so I set it back.

"Roxas, you need to actually try to hit me. That's the way you win. But back up sometimes. So _you_ don't get hit."

I snorted and found an arrowgun, what Xigbar used. But as soon as I touched it, I pulled my hand back. Nope. Not that one either.

"I think this may be the one for me." Roxas said. "I think I'm doing much better with this sword. I'm ready to-" And I winced and turned around to see Roxas sprawled across the floor with multiple decorative suits of armor laying on top of him.

"My... my Lord?" Yuffie started to push the armor off of him until Roxas could stand up. The blond sighed.

"I guess... this _isn't_ the sword for me.

"Oh, no, my Lord. You were doing quite well, actually-"

"Yuffie, let's be honest here. I suck."

I turned back to the weapons, and one caught my eye. It was a sword, white, with intricately-drawn flowers and stars covering the entire thing. The blade had swirled teeth, looking almost dainty, and the guard curled up around my hand, looking like rose petals. The entire thing was key-shaped.

_The sword from my dream?_ My hand, which had been reaching for it, stopped. That dream... that awful, scary dream. But, it _was_ just a dream. I reached for it and grabbed it; it was perfectly balanced in my hand, easy to swing and twirl. I moved my arm so the key-sword rested against my back. And I noticed two other key-swords: one black and one white. The ones Roxas had. I removed the thoughts of my dream, picked up those swords as well, and walked back to the field where Yuffie and Roxas were.

"Hey, Roxas," His head swung over to look at me. "Try these." As I got over to him, I handed him the swords. He glanced at each one.

"Umm... my Lord and Lady, those swords are _Keyblades_."

I glanced at the sword in my hand. "And?" I asked.

"Keyblades are the hardest weapons to use. They are used with spirit, not with strength. No one has ever successfully-"

"Hey, guys. What're we talking about?" My knees started to go weak as Sora walked in. He brushed a lock of chocolate hair from his face and grinned. And slung over his shoulder was a Keyblade.

Yuffie noticed it too. "Sora? How long have you used a Keyblade?"

Sora shrugged. "Mom and Dad started teaching me just after you left. They both wield Keyblades. I thought you knew?"

Yuffie promptly sat on a bench. "Apparently all my facts are wrong."

That's when Sora noticed the swords in our hands. "I didn't know you had those."

I shrugged. "We just got 'em."

"So, what are their names?" Roxas and I glanced at each other confused.

Yuffie stepped in. "The ones Roxas has are called Oathkeeper and Oblivion, and Naminé's is Hopeful Dreams, I think."

Sora grinned and held out his Keyblade. "This is called the Kingdom Key. If you're trying to figure out how to use those, I could teach you."

Roxas blinked. "Why are you being so nice?"

"I just thought you'd like some help." Sora said.

"_And,_" I added, "he's terrified of being punished by the Prince and Princess after they return to power."

Sora blushed slightly, interlocking his fingers and resting the back of his head against his palms. "So, should we get to it?"

And fifteen minutes later, Roxas was on the ground again. I sighed as Sora slung his Keyblade back over his shoulder. Roxas stood up and grabbed his Keyblades again.

"Come on, Roxas. You got knocked over by running into an unmoving target. Who does that?" I said between laughs.

Roxas raised his hand, and Sora laughed. "Alright. Naminé's turn." I stood up and stood in Roxas's place, holding Hopeful Dreams level with the target.

"Hang on, Naminé. You're not very balanced." And he was directly behind me, his hot breath hitting my neck in pants. My heart began to beat faster, throbbing hard against my rib cage. His hands moved down my sides. "Like this." He said and he grabbed my hips gently, pushing the bones back until they locked. My balance shifted slightly, my footing more stable. He then pressed against my back, straightening my spine. My lungs felt like they were stretched out more; like more air was rushing into them, filling them to the highest capacity.

I glanced back at him as he stepped away. The warmth faded and my heart pulsed slower "Go ahead." I stepped back with one foot, and pushed forward, bringing my arm in a slightly sloppy arc. But the blade still hit the cloth-and-straw target; its teeth tore through the cloth, letting the 'guts' spill out. Sora nodded thoughtfully.

"Well, the curve was rather rough, and your overall form still needs some work, but all-in-all, you did well." He turned to his sister. "Naminé is on a different level than Roxas, so how about I train her and you train him?" My knees turned to jelly again and I gulped. All alone with Sora?

"Different level?" Roxas spluttered. "B-b-b-but-"

"Roxas, let's face it. You're _really_ bad." I interrupted.

Roxas grew red. "I am not!"

"So, Naminé," Sora said, interrupting the conversation. "Tomorrow after breakfast we'll head out. And you're probably gonna want to wear something lighter than the cloak. And flip-flops."

"Why?" I asked, a bit confused.

"You'll see." His fingers twitched slightly, and the Kingdom Key was gone.

Roxas and I started. "How did you do that?" I gasped.

Sora glanced at his hand. "Uh... you just will it away, I guess. I dunno. I never really thought about it." I tried to will Hopeful Dreams away, wanting it to vanish, imagining it vanishing. Eventually, it disappeared in a flash of soft star light and a few flower petals. Roxas glanced at me, and dried to make his disappear. Eventually, they started to glow. In excitement, Roxas threw his hands up.

And Oathkeeper and Oblivion came crashing down on his head, knocking him to the floor. I helped him up with a sigh. "See? This is what I mean. You're doing bad."

* * *

><p><em>Destiny: WARNING: Next chapter will have a High Fluff Warning, so be ready for it.<em>  
><em>Roxas: What? Is Sora gonna make a move on Nami? Because you do <em>not_-  
>Destiny: Yes, yes, Roxas. We know.<br>Yuffie: Review for the extremely fluffy chapter!_


	15. Train

It was sunset. I was wearing the cloak of the Resistance, and looking out into the dying sun.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" I turned around and smiled.

"Sora." He grinned and sat down on the grassy hillside.

"Why are you up here all alone?" He asked.

"Just thinking."

"About what?"

I turned to him, a light blush on my cheeks and a soft smile spreading across my face. "You," and then I hastily added, "and me."

"What about us?"

A bubbly feeling grew in my stomach when he said "us". "Well... being together. Like _together_ together."

"Really?" Sora stood up. "You think you _like_ me?"

I shook my head. "No." I said. "I think I love you."

He gently set his hand against my face. I closed my eyes and let out a breath I hadn't realized I'd been holding. _He... he loves me too._ And I opened my eyes.

And then I screamed and backed away.

"Naminé?" Sora asked. "What's the matter?"

"You..." I gasped. "Your face..."

He looked hurt. "Nami, I thought you loved me. Why are you judging me?"

"You can't be alive like that." The top of his head was split open like a melon, down to his eyebrows. Impossible. I backed up. No human could -

I backed into something solid, something alive. I turned around, and I gasped, my hand flying to my mouth. There was my younger twin, bare-chested with two gaping wounds in his chest. Blood ran down his torso and stained his pants deep crimson. He was looking at me, hurt as well.

"Sister? Don't you remember these?" He asked. "You should. I got them because of you."

I shook my head violently. "No." I gasped. "No. It wasn't me." I ran away from him, and ran into his look-alike, Ventus. The back of his skull was bashed in, and dried blood clung to his golden hair, matting it down against his scalp.

"Remember this, Naminé?" He asked. I ran again, and ran right into Yuffie, who was standing there with one eye blind and clouded, and dry blood around it. She sighed.

"All I wanted was to serve you, My Lady. Is this how you repay your servants?" And there were so many other people. Axel, Demyx, Larxene, Marluxia, Xigbar... and then I ran into a little blond boy.

"Mommy!" He screamed, and I stopped dead. Blood was pouring out of his mouth. "Mommy! Save me!" He grabbed me, and everyone else reached out for me too.

_"Naminé, Naminé." _The voices sounded as one. _"Why did you let us die?"_

Roxas and Sora looked sadly at me. "And we were going to tell you. Our biggest secrets." They both summoned their Keyblades. "Now join us."

* * *

><p>I woke up, sitting up straight in bed, screaming my lungs out. Sweat streamed down my face - or was it tears? - and my heart pounded against my ribs.<p>

"Ow." I turned at the familiar voice and saw my brother rubbing his forehead. "You hit me." He said, but it wasn't accusingly.

"R-Roxas?"

"We thought someone was murdering you, Princess." I then noticed Xigbar, Axel, Demyx... almost all the Resistance.

"Oh." I murmured. Roxas stepped closer to me.

"Nams?" I looked at his chest and set my hand on it. He was shirtless, as usual when he slept. And it was unmarred, and there was _definitely_ no wounds. I let go my restraint and just _sobbed._ He pulled me close and held me tight, just letting me cry out the pain of a horrid nightmare.

* * *

><p>Even after everyone left to return to sleep, including Roxas and Larxene, I couldn't fall back asleep. The faces of my friends still haunted me, but even worse was the face of the little child crying over and over again, "Mommy!" Giving up the idea of sleep, I instead dressed in a white spaghetti-strap top, yoga pants, and white flip-flops and went down to the giant kitchen and grabbed an apple. I took a bite when I heard shifting nearby. I turned to see...Sora.<p>

He was lying back against the counter, absentmindedly picking at an orange and watching me... until he realized I had noticed him. "Oh, good morning, Naminé. But it's a little early, isn't it? About 3 a.m."

"I can't sleep." I said. "What's your excuse?"

"Same. You woke me up with all that screaming, and whenever I closed my eyes to sleep again, I heard the screams. All of them. Agonizing. Awful." His voice dropped. "Well." He looked back at me. When did he look away? "Since you're up, and I'm up, and we've...sorta...had breakfast, what do you say we start training early? You're dressed for it."

I glanced down at myself. "Um... I didn't mean-"

"Let's go!" I gasped as he grabbed my wrist and started pulling me along. "We gotta go catch a train. Good thing they run 24/7."

"Train?" He ended up dragging me to the station, and soon we were on a train to who-knows-where.

"Where are we going?" I asked nervously.

"Well, my grandfather lived here. He helped train me to use the Keyblade. And we always went to this valley... he said it was imbued with some kind of energy ancient Keybladers used when training. He died a few years ago."

"Oh."

"Yeah. But he was the one who got me as good as I am. I wouldn't have been able to do much without Grandpa." He looked out the window. "Do you remember your parents? Before the invasion."

"There are brief flashes. But one of my favorites is my mom singing."

"Singing?" He asked.

I nodded and was brought back to a time where my mother sat in a chair, rocking back and forth, embroidering something soft and white.

_"My little Naminé. You will be so beautiful when you grow up. A true princess."_ For years looking back, I thought she was just calling me a princess. I didn't realize that she meant my nobility and future place as the Princess.

_"Mommy? Will you sing to me? That song? The strange one?" I had asked._

_My mother laughed gently, and slowly began to sing._

"Mi hija, hija de la noche,  
>Escucha, y se acorda<br>Yo te amo siempre  
>Mi hija, hija de la luna.<p>

Yo estaré con tu siempre.  
>Yo no abandonaré<br>En mi corazon, tu estarás.  
>Siempre y siempre, hija.<p>

Y cuando yo dejaré este mundo  
>Y tu estarás solamente,<br>Yo estaré ahí, tu no estarás a solas.  
>Mi hija, mi hijita, mi querida."<p>

I quickly clamped my hand over my mouth when I realized I had sung the words out loud. But Sora looked slightly stunned.

"Your voice... is the most beautiful thing I've ever heard."

"You mean it?" I gasped.

"Naminé..." One of his hands was on my upper arm, pulling me closer to him. The other was on my shoulder. _Is he going to kiss me?_ He leaned closer to me. I closed my eyes quietly, and felt the brush of fingetrips against my lips. He was so close. I wanted to feel the softness of his mouth.

And then a bell rang and the conductor announced the stop. Sora jumped back. "This is ours." He turned towards the doors. "C'mon, Naminé."

"Sora?" I asked softly. "Where you... where you going to kiss me?" We lurched to a stop and I nearly lost my footing.

"We're here." He exited and I followed close behind._ And we were so close!_ I sighed as the train doors hissed shut behind me.

* * *

><p><em>Destiny: Fluff! Fluff everywhere!<em>

_Naminé: Except the beginning._

_Sora: Dang, Dest. Quit writing scary dreams._

_Destiny: No. I've been practicing writing nightmares for a work in my personal fiction, and I need all the practice I can get._

_Roxas: Dest, you were going to the them the plot bunny._

_Destiny: Right. Thank you, Roxas. Well, after this is over, if I get enough want for more of this canon, I'll write three new stories from this canon. Each will be this story from another characters point of view. I've even decided on titles!_

_Sora: If she does do this, I'llbe next with _Pathway to Heaven.

_Roxas: And then it'll be me with _Voyage for Bliss.

_Axel: And finally, me with_ Searching for Eternity.

_Destiny: Would you guys be interested in this? Review and tell me! Until next time!_


	16. Hood

Dark clouds draped over the pre-dawn sky like a hood pulled over a person's face. Sora was leading me through town, not looking back at me. His face was hooded by shadows. I crept behind him, silent as well. Ever since we left the train, after he nearly kissed me, he hadn't said a word.

We walked through a forest and into a valley. And then he turned and faced me. "Summon your Keyblade." He commanded. I quickly reversed the process of dismissing Hopeful Dreams, and it appeared in my hand.

I bit my lip and decided to speak. "Sora? Is something wrong?"

"Nothing." Sora snapped. I tensed, but didn't say anything. "Proper posture, Naminé. Remember what I taught you?"

I nodded and quickly stood the way he had shown me yesterday. He nodded. "Nicely done. Now, come at me."

"What?" I asked.

"Surprise me. Manage to catch me off guard. But be careful. No maiming."

I gulped and started to run at him, blade swung high. But he easily blocked and knocked me away. I gasped as I hit the ground.

"You have to get up faster, Naminé! Your enemies won't stop in trying to kill you." Sora ran at me this time, and as I prepared to block, he leapt into the air and kicked me in the back, once again knocking me to the ground.

"C'mon, Naminé. You have to do better than that." He didn't yell. But the intensity of his voice was so strong I was shaking. I moved to get up, but he pushed me back down and aimed his Keyblade at my throat. I wasn't learning anything! I quickly pushed the blade away and sat up.

"I don't want to do this anymore."

"You want to fail and lose any faith that those people had in you?" Sora hissed.

"I'm going to fail if you keep going like this!" I shouted. Sora stepped back, flinching as if I had just slapped him. "I don't get it. You act like a jerk to me for twelve years. Twelve years, Sora! And I was willing to let it go. Because that's not you. That's not who you really are. And then you apologized, and I forgave you. But… was that all an act? Did you try to deceive me? Do you… really hate me?"

Sora was silent briefly. "Naminé, I thought _you_ hated _me._ And… well, I had the overwhelming urge to kiss you, but… it was stupid. I'm sorry."

I felt my face flush. He was just so cute when he was apologizing. And I had to forgive him. And so, I pushed my nerves aside and placed a kiss on his cheek. "I forgive you." I said as I pulled back.

"N-Naminé?"

"Now, I believe we were in the middle of a lesson," I said with a grin. "Or did you forget that, Master Sora?"

A playful smirk appeared on his face. "Me, forget to teach my pupil? Never." I raised my Keyblade as he raised his, and I ran at him again. He ducked to dodge, and I used his back as a springboard and went over him and then hit him from underneath, flipping him onto his back. I aimed my Keyblade at his throat.

"Gotcha," I said with a wide grin.

He smiled back, eyes alit with pride. "Indeed you do, Naminé." He pushed away the tip of my Keyblade and stood up. "And again!"

* * *

><p>We practiced for a while longer, until Sora called a break. I sat down on the grass, and he took a seat beside me. I dismissed Hopeful Dreams, and reclined back a bit.<p>

"Sometimes," Sora said, "I wonder if you're really a princess."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You're just so… normal. I don't know why people wouldn't want you as their ruler."

"I dunno," I said. "Some people just don't like me. Or Roxas."

"Well, I suppose that's a shame for them. They haven't gotten to know a girl like you." I blushed slightly. "Naminé?" He seemed nervous. "I…" He leaned closer to me. "I'm sorry if I seem a bit presumptuous."

"Why would you—" And that's when he kissed me full on the mouth. My eyes flew open and I stared into his ocean-colored eyes. His hand came up to my face and I just relaxed and kissed him back. My heart was pounding against my chest as the kiss continued, and then he pulled back.

My head was spinning, and all I could say was, "Wow."

"Y-yeah." Sora seemed as dazed as I was. "Wow." And then something flashed in his eyes. "You don't mind, though, right? That was okay?"

"That was fine, Sora. Calm down." He was kind of cute when he started freaking out like that. But now I couldn't think about that. "Should we get back to training then?"

"I suppose we… do you hear that?"

I did. Soon a figure in a black coat came running into the clearing. He pulled back his hood to reveal Zexion. "Your Highness!" He knelt before me. "Both you and your companion are physically unharmed?"

"Yes." My heart started racing again, but for a completely different reason. "Did something happen? Is… Is my brother okay?"

"Prince Roxas is perfectly safe, as are Masters Xigbar and Axel. But there is one unidentified casualty."

"What happened?"

"The local law enforcement found a Resistance member and killed them. We're trying to retrieve the body from them so we can identify it and pay proper respects."

"We need to go back," I told Sora. He nodded and started off. I walked beside Zexion. "Zexion, do you know anything like… the cause of death?"

"We have retrieved that information, Your Highness."

Something in my head told me to stop, but I didn't listen. "And the cause was…"

"A sniper shot the member, and the bullet went through the eye and into the brain. Whoever it was likely died on impact."

My heart skipped a beat. Wait. No way. It couldn't be… _I ran again, and ran right into Yuffie, who was standing there with one eye blind and clouded, and dry blood around it.  
><em> That dream… it couldn't be real. It couldn't have been Yuffie! _But in my dream she looked like she'd gotten shot or stabbed through the eye. Sort of._ I caught up to Sora. "We have to hurry!"

* * *

><p><em>Destiny: After a long hiatus, I am <em>back!  
><em>All: Yay!<br>Sora: Did... you really just kill off my sister.  
>Destiny: *Whistles*<br>Sora: But I only just got to see her again!  
>Destiny: Well, this is sort of a tragedy.<br>Axel: You mean you're killing off a lot of us? But why?  
>Destiny: For drama. And you <em>are _kind of fighting for freedom. Some lives must be lost. *grumble* Don't wanna end up like _Twilight_ where only the bad guys die.  
>Roxas: Um, leave reviews, or Dest might go into a full-on <em>Twilight _rant!_


	17. Glass

We were back in a flash. "Your Highness!" Marluxia came up to me. "We've… retrieved the body."

I gulped. "Did you identify it?"

"Yes, Your Highness. Come and see for yourself."

I had to be wrong. But why else would the pink-haired man look so grim? I took Sora's hand tightly in my own as I walked into the room where the body was. Inside already were Roxas, Axel, and Xigbar.

"Naminé…" Roxas whimpered. "Sora…" I went and looked at the body. Raven hair, pale skin, a headband. It only took a glance for me to confirm it.

I quickly turned and embraced Sora. "I'm… I'm sorry." He looked, and a strangulated cry forced its way out of his throat. He sank to his knees, and I fell with him. He sobbed brokenly into my shoulder, and when he looked into my eyes, I could see his were dying inside, becoming icy and cold and broken.

"Why Yuffie?" He sobbed. "After I finally got to see her…"

"I'm so, so sorry, Sora…" I murmed.

"Yuffie…" Xigbar said. "So brave… even in death. I'm glad… I chose you as my deputy."

Everyone paid their respects and left the room. Nobody could believe it. Yuffie was dead. I gripped the ribbon still in my hair. How could she be dead? I thought about just last night, when Yuffie was in my room, trying to comfort me after my horrible nightmare. The one where I had seen her dead. And now the nightmare was coming true.

After we exited, Roxas came up to me, and we held each other. The Royal Twins, almost split apart by death. I thought. "Roxas," I said, "were you with Yuffie when she died?" It was still a sensitive subject, like walking on shards of broken glass. But I had to know. If she died keeping my brother safe… Then I owed her. Sora was by my side still. He wanted to know as well.

"Yes… I was. Sort of."

The three of us all walked off, over to the side to talk. "Tell us please," Sora said. "I… I need to know."

Roxas nodded in understanding. "We'd finished our training and gone out to go to the ice cream shop. Yuffie said that I deserved a treat for all my hard work. But right after we got our ice cream and were walking about, some policemen found us. 'Members of the Resistance!' they had shouted and chased after us. Yuffie shoved me back down a nearby alleyway, saying she'd lead them away and then I could escape, return here, and possibly get help if she needed it.

"And then she ran. The policemen followed her, and after they were gone, I exited the alley. I started back to the HQ—here—which happened to be in the direction Yuffie had run. So I saw her. The police chasing her just couldn't keep up—Yuffie's extremely fast, you know—but then, there was a gunshot. I was shocked. Most policemen don't have guns. And then I saw on the nearby roof, there was a sniper. The policemen had chased her down that street so that the sniper could take her out. When I saw Yuffie again, she was on the ground, blood pouring from her eye. It was disgusting. But I did what she told me to. I ran all the way back here and found Xigbar and told him what had happened, that Yuffie was dead. He sent Zexion to find you two, and then they got her body back here, and then you guys showed up. That's really all that happened."

Sora was silent the entire time Roxas had been talking. He finally spoke. "She saved your life. At the cost of her own."

I was scared about where he would be taking the line of thought. "Sora… _she's_ the one who chose to. Roxas had no hand in what happened—"

"I know," Sora said. "I'm just… amazed. The Yuffie I remember wouldn't have done that." He sighed. "Perhaps… we weren't as close as I had thought. If we were, then maybe she would've at least told me that she was going to be running away. Maybe she would have taken me."

"But then Roxas and I might have never come here. We might be dead. Everything happens for a reason, Sora. Everything."

Sora could only cry and cry. Roxas took his cue and left us alone. Sora was in my arms, sobbing into my shoulder. "I only just found her…" He sobbed. "And now she's gone. Forever. And no one can bring her back."

What do you say to a person who is grieving for the loss of someone they loved? "It's okay?" No, because it's not okay. I couldn't really think of what to say to magically make him feel better. So I said the only thing I could think of. "I'm here, Sora. No matter what happens, I'll always be here."

He looked up at me, tears still streaming from his eyes. "Naminé… Really?"

"Really. I promise. I'm here."

He wiped tears out of his eyes and tried to put a brave face on. "Then… I'll always be here for you too. Until the end of forever. I promise. Nothing can stand in the way of being with you. Nothing."

I smiled at his promise. "Forever. And beyond." He smiled back and offered his hand to me, pinky outstretched. We crossed our pinkies together.

"Pinky promise?" Sora asked, tears starting to go away. He wiped them away for good. No more flowed from his eyes.

"Pinky promise." I didn't hide the bright grin that was forming.

"Well, then…" Sora stood up. "Shall we be off?"

He helped me up. "Sounds good to me," I replied.

"My Lady." He offered his arm to me. I took it. "To your room, then, My Lady?"

"Yes," I said, stifling a laugh. "Let us be off." We were both in a good mood. We had made our promise. A promise that would last forever and nothing and no one would ever get in the way of it. Or so I had thought at the time.

* * *

><p><em>Destiny: Sheesh, it's been a long time. Sorry I've been so inactive.<br>Naminé: Wait, what do you mean, "at the time"?  
>Destiny: You'll see. Review so I can have inspiration!<em>


	18. Handkerchief

Sora wasn't at dinner that night. Sop I stole an extra plate of food and went to go find him. When I finally did, he was sitting alone in the training room, holding a blood-stained handkerchief in his hands, crying.

"Sora?" I asked. He jumped. "Oh, sorry. I didn't mean to scare you."

"N-Naminé! I… I was just…" He broke off with a sigh.

I sat next to him and offered the plate. "You missed dinner."

"I didn't feel like eating," He said. He took the plate anyway, but he just stared at the food with a distant expression.

"What's that in your hand?" I asked.

He jumped again. "It's… um…" I took a look. It was, like I said before, a handkerchief, trimmed with lace and with a few spots of blood. In the lower right corner, "Yuffie" was stitched in curlicue letters. Sora noticed me looking. "Mom made it for her…" He whimpered, crying harder. "She had it on her when she died. She never _did_ forget any of us, did she?"

"It would seem so."

"Then why did she leave? If she cared about Mom and me so much… then why?"

"What about your father?"

"My father?"

"Yuffie and Vanitas. Did they have a good relationship, or…?"

"I don't know… they… might have not been very close…"

"That might be why she left. I mean, it's obvious that her running away had nothing to do with you. You saw how happy she was when you reunited. So that wasn't it. And, well…" I gestured to the handkerchief. "It would seem that it wasn't your mother that caused her to run away, so my best guess is that it was your father's fault she left."

Sora mulled over my words silently, still clutching the handkerchief tight. "She cared…" He murmured. "She really did."

I put my hand on his shoulder. "Of course she did. She was a wonderful person. I didn't know her too well, but I know that for a fact."

"Well, I know she was too, but what makes you say that?"

"She saved Roxas. She gave her own life so Roxas could live. If that doesn't show a brave, compassionate person, then I don't know what does."

Sora smiled softly. "Yeah… you're right."

"I'm a lady," I said. "Of course I'm right."

I giggled. Sora rolled his eyes slightly. And then I heard a loud, growl-like sound. Sora pushed the plate on his lap away and summoned his Keyblade. The sound came again. I realized what it was. "Sora," I said, stifling laughter. "That's your stomach."

He dismissed his Keyblade and put a hand over his stomach. "You know…" he said. "Now that I think about it… I really _am_ hungry."

I handed him his plate again. "Then eat. I brought it down here for you, after all." I stood up. "I'll be off. Return that plate to the kitchen when you're done, will you?"

"Yeah. Don't worry about it. I got it." I turned and started walking back up the stairs and toward my room. As I left, I think I heard, "Thank you, Naminé."

* * *

><p><em>Destiny: Ugh! This turned out so short, but I ran out of ideas!<em>

_Sora: Aww… I was hoping for more…_

_Destiny: I'll try to get more words out next time. But, in other news…_

_Naminé: Oh, no. Shameless self-advertising_

_Destiny: Shush, Naminé. But, anyway, I now have a _Deviantart _account! The account name is Cloud-Nine-Dreamer, and it'll mostly be full of original fiction I've written and stuff like that. Check it out sometime, please! (I'm new and have like, no watchers.)_

_All: *groan* Is it over?_

_Destiny: Yeah, yeah. Axel, would you?_

_Axel: Please drop some reviews. Destiny feels more motivated when people review._


	19. Wine

Everyone grieved over the loss of Yuffie over the next week, each in his or her own way. Sora, for instance, spent most of the time when he wasn't teaching me either with me or alone, crying and mourning. Roxas and I usually just practiced and practiced. Both of us were improving (Roxas, for instance, wasn't sucking anymore). Larxene spent most of her time alone, Demyx went to his music for comfort, and Luxord went to his best friend: Mister Alcohol. I think the drink of choice for this occasion was wine.

At the next meeting Xigbar called, he announced the cancellation of the "tournament/shows-of-skills" thing in light of Yuffie's death, along with announcement of the new Deputy to take her place. I knew who it was beforehand. Xigbar had conferred with Roxas and me about his choice. Since we didn't know _too_ many people yet, we agreed. The new Deputy was Marluxia.

After the meeting was over, everyone went their separate ways. On the way back to my room, I walked past the kitchen. Inside was Luxord, who was drinking wine like there was no tomorrow.

"Luxord?" I asked I walked in.

Luxord looked my way and set down the bottle he had (he wasn't even using a glass. He was drinking straight out of the bottle.) "Naminé!" Then a look of realization dawned. "Or Princess… Your Majesty, maybe?"

"Just Naminé. You can save the titles for later. But anyway…" I glanced at the wine. "You're drinking straight from the bottle again?"

"What?" He asked. "I'm going to finish it." He took another swig.

"You're going to be _smashed_!" I said.

"I know." He took another drink. "That's what I'm going for."

"What do you mean…? You've never been this upset before…"

"I've never been in love before," He said.

My brain short-circuited. In love? But if he was "drowning his sorrows" so to speak, then that meant… "You love Yuffie?"

"I… I did. She was just… wow. It's hard to explain, but… She was just… incredible and amazing and lovely…" He looked at the wine bottle again. "Even before you and Axel and Roxas came along, when I was thirteen and she was eight. A cute little girl. A playground crush, you might say… and I met her again here… I felt that spark again." He took another drink mournfully. "We kissed. A few times. I told her I loved her. Once, at least. And now…" He took a huge gulp with a sigh. "She's gone. For good. I'm never gonna see her again. I'm never gonna feel that spark again."

"I…I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault." He finished up the last of the wine and left the kitchen. "I'm going to my room."

I stood there alone for a little bit. Luxord loved Yuffie. The slave boy fell in love with his Mistress. Who would have thought? Except… I was kind of living out the same story, just a gender flip. I fell in love with my former Master.

I went back to my room somewhat slowly, still processing everything. How badly did it hurt, I wondered, to see the dead body of your beloved, to see their still face and know that they will never, ever come back? And then a more disturbing thought came to mind. Sora and I are sort of a role-reversal of Luxord and Yuffie. And since _their_ story ended unhappily… How would mine and Sora's end?

* * *

><p><em>Destiny: Again, it's short, but I ran out of ideas for this.<em>

_Luxord: You split Yuffie and me up!_

_Yuffie: Just after we found each other again!_

_Destiny: I just thought it helped the drama… anyway, please review and I'll be writing more!_


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